Great Valley might be spared tax hike for 2013-14

With school districts mostly dealing only with bad financial happenings, the Great Valley School District has some welcomed good news.

At this week’s Board of School Directors work session, Great Valley Superintendent Alan Lonoconus presented the board with an optimistic appraisal of the district’s income situation.

“We’re starting to see a little bit of upswing in revenues, and we’re actually going to be able to roll over about $2 million from this year’s budget to next year’s budget,” Lonoconus said. “That money would normally be placed in our reserves, but we’re going to use that to help balance the budget next year.”

The uptick in revenue has come from increases in delinquent and transfer tax collections, a decrease in assessment appeals and new development. Those, along with a downward trend in health care claims, have put the district in a better financial standing, which could benefit taxpayers.

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Based on earlier calculations, the district planned to ask for a 1.5-percent tax increase to cover the 2013-14 budget gap. Lonoconus said that now, the district might be able to forgo a tax hike.

“Based on the revised projections and the outlook for the future, we could go lower, even to zero, if the board would desire,” Lonoconus said.

Lonoconus showed the board a revised five-year plan, one with a zero-percent tax increase for 2013-14 and 1.7 percent hike for subsequent years.

“With the assumptions we have, and being as conservative as we’ve been the last few years, we feel confident in these projections,” Lonoconus said. “As you know from past years, even if I budget at 99-percent accuracy, I’m still going to have about $800,000 left over, which then each year will be added back into (the five-year plan).”

The $80.7 million budget for 2013-14 will be reviewed again at next Monday’s board meeting. It is scheduled for final adoption on June 3. While it doesn’t have to make a tax hike decision until the latter date, Lonoconus said the board could act as soon as Monday.

“They could. It’s up to them,” Lonoconus said.

Also at the meeting, District Business Administrator Chuck Linderman reported other encouraging signs for the future, including an update on the Uptown Worthington site. Linderman said that benefits from the first apartment complex there could be seen in the fall of 2014.

“When that site is complete, we will receive about $6 million in additional tax revenue,” Linderman said. “While that development doesn’t directly impact us now, it does impact our projections in a positive way.”